If you have come to this page, I'm very happy because I want you to know there was once a beautiful angel named "Molly." Molly was a little red and white Cocker Spaniel who inspired her mom and many others to take up the cause of saving dogs and cats in animal shelters. She started a rescue movement that has saved thousands of pets from death in the pound,..... "MOLLY'S MILITIA." In September of 1999, I did something I had never done before...visited an animal shelter I read about in the newspaper. I was about two steps into the area where the dogs were kept when I saw the most beautiful face I had ever seen....a bright-eyed little Cocker Spaniel. Looking closer, I saw that her hair was matted into grapefruit size balls on several areas of her thin body. The almost unbearable stench of urine was all over her. Her eyes begged me to take her out of there, and I did. That day, September 1, 1999, she became my "Molly" and I became her mama.... spirit, soul, body, and mind. From the day we found each other, we were inseparable. If I moved...Molly moved. Molly slept with me every night. If I got up to go to the bathroom, Molly woke up out of a deep sleep, and went with me. When I went back to bed, she went back to bed. During the first days at home, she was afraid of her "daddy" , but very soon, she came to love him dearly. He returned that same love to her and took wonderful care of her when she was sick and dying of cancer. A couple of months after adopting Molly from the pound in 1999, I started an animal rescue called Molly's Militia, www.mollysmilitia.org. Today Molly's movement is THRIVING and growing every day. We rescue approximately 100 or more dogs and cats, every month, from animal shelters. We hold adoptions at PETSMART in Augusta, Georgia, every Saturday from 4:30-7:30 p.m. and at PETSMART in Aiken, S. C., every Saturday from 10:00-3:00 p.m. We also adopt from our homes 7 days a week. Molly's Militia has brought me some of the best friends I ever had. The volunteers and foster parents are like family members to us. Molly inspired me and so many others to DO SOMETHING about the countless animals that are dying in shelters every day across America. Molly's memory will live on through Molly's Militia and the many angels that have been and will be saved because of her. As I write this, it hasn't even been 48 hours since Molly's death. My heart is broken into a million pieces. Molly started feeling bad in November 2003, and we discovered she had a lump on the side of her neck. We took Molly to a specialist in Columbia, South Carolina, and the tumor was successfully removed. However, the pathology report came back with a heartwrenching diagnosis....cancer of the salivary gland. During a check-up with her home town vet two weeks later, another devastating blow hit us...tumors were growing in Molly's throat. We contacted the top cancer specialist for animals in the United States. She consulted with Molly's vets regularly, and express mailed a regimen of medicine and food supplements from her office in California. Molly also was started on chemotherapy. Molly did fairly well until the night of Jan. 19, 2004. She woke up off and on during the night, coughing and making gurgling sounds in her throat. I was almost frozen in fear as I watched my baby deteriorate before my eyes. The 3 vets who treated her all told me this was the worst type cancer she could have...very fast growing and always fatal. All we hoped to gain with treatment was more time with our precious Molly. I couldn't bear the thought of her dying, but I loved her too much to watch her suffer. I couldn't believe how cruel this cancer was. I determined that if her re-check didn't show shrinkage of the tumors or if the tumors were bigger, I would have to let her go. Sadly, that was the case. The tumors had grown much bigger in a short time. I sat on the floor of the vet's office holding Molly and wailing in grief at the thought of having to put my angel to sleep. I looked in her sweet eyes and told her we both had to let go, and that mommy would always be with her. I knew she understood. She labored to breathe. I started to run out the door as the vet came to euthanize Molly, but I turned around at the door and quickly came back over to hold her. I couldn't leave her when she needed me most. We stared in each other's eyes and said goodbye, as the medicine was injected into Molly. I wanted to die with her. The vet gently laid her head down on the table and checked her heart. My Molly was no longer suffering. Even though I knew we had done the best thing for our angel, nothing comforted me. I would have given anything I owned if Molly could have been healed. No matter how much I loved and wanted to protect her, I couldn't stop the cancer from taking over her body. My husband is also grieving. I see and feel how much he loved her. He spent thousands of dollars trying to help Molly get well, and hand fed her every meal when she was sick. We know we have to get better for our other precious dogs who need us, and the many angels in shelters, waiting for someone to rescue them. I can only hope and pray that my heart will heal in time. THANK YOU MOLLY for the wonderful years we had together. I wish there could have been more years for us. Daddy and I will meet you on the Rainbow Bridge one day. Until then, we will hold you in our hearts and minds and love you forever. Mama and Daddy, Mattie, Macy, Skylar, Taylor, Mia, Drew, Andy, Pearl, and all of your volunteers in Molly's Militia DONATIONS to help the animals in shelters and donations in memory of Molly may be sent to: MOLLY'S MILITIA P. O. BOX 6816 NORTH AUGUSTA, S. C. 29861 Or go to our websites to donate on PAYPAL Any amount is appreciated. Molly's Militia is a 501(C)(3)non-profit corporation www.mollysmilitia.org www.molly.petfinder.org

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Molly's People Parent(s), Jan and Elaine, would appreciate knowing you have visited their Molly's Memorial Residency.

Click here to Email Jan and Elaine a condolence, or to send an E-sympathy pet memorial card click here.